How to Make a Fabric Paper Chain (Easy, Cute No-Sew Garland!)

Learn how to make a fabric paper chain using simple scraps and a few easy steps. This cosy, low-waste craft comes together quickly and adds a joyful handmade touch to your home.

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When Christmas comes around, my children ask for one thing. 

We love a salt dough craft. We love making gingerbread. And we absolutely love decorating the Christmas tree (not always to my taste!)

But the one thing that they look forward to, more than anything else, is making paper chains. 

Here’s Why I Don’t Love Paper Chains

My kiddos love the satisfaction of the chain growing as you loop all those little strips together. Paper chains are a firm favourite.

But you know what isn’t my favourite? Buying loads of paper each year, painstakingly cutting it into strips, and then having to throw it away at the end of Christmas, only to do it all again next year.

So this year I made something a little more sustainable and used scraps to make fabric paper chains. 

My kiddos can still enjoy sticking it all together each December thanks to handy-dandy velcro closures. And you can store it flat to reuse year after year (genius if I say so myself!)

Why I’ll Never Go Back to Paper Chains

Never say never, but I can’t imagine ever cutting up those little paper strips again! Here’s why:

• Scrap-busting: If you’re a sewist, or just someone who owns clothes, you’re bound to have some bits of fabric around the house that you can turn into fabric paper chain
• Easy: A no-sew project that doesn’t need any skills or special equipment
• Sustainable: Uses what you already have, and lasts for years!
• Child-friendly: A lovely project to do with little ones, especially if they want to help but aren’t quite ready for sewing.
• Customisable: Match them to any season or celebration – linen for a cottage-style Christmas, cheerful prints for birthdays, pastels for spring
• Storage-friendly: Take them apart and store them flat for next year
• Pet/kid durable: Survive curious toddlers and over-enthusiastic cats far better than delicate paper versions
• Budget-friendly: Because you’re using scraps, offcuts, or old clothing, the cost is essentially zero
• Sentimental: Use pieces from old garments, baby clothes, or favourite fabrics

Related: How to Make Patchwork Christmas Ornaments

The Best Fabrics to Use for Fabric Paper Chains

You might be wondering whether you can just cut strips of fabric and call it a day, and the answer is… sort of. 

Fabric paper chains need fabric with a little structure. Upholstery fabric, canvas and other heavyweight fabrics work best. 

You can use lighter weight fabrics but they have a tendency to bunch up. To avoid this, add a layer of interfacing to give them some more stiffness. I skipped this and regretted it!

You don’t need large amounts of fabric for this project, so scraps, fat quarters, old linens and bits of old clothing will all work beautifully for this project.

Related: Where to Buy Vintage, Reclaimed and Deadstock Fabric

How to Make Fabric Paper Chains

Supplies

• About a metre/yard of fabric (makes around 100 loops)
• Stiff interfacing (optional)
• Fabric scissors or a rotary cutter
• Pinking shears, scalloped shears or a wavy rotary cutter (optional)
• Stick-on velcro (approx 1m per 100 loops of chain)

Step 1: Make Your Strips

Take a piece of fabric and tear it into long strips 4cm wide. For more help with this, take a look at my post on making ribbon from fabric. 

If you pull away all the loose threads after tearing, the raw edge won’t fray. But if you’d prefer a more polished finish you could try cutting strips with pinking shears, scalloped shears or a wavy-edged rotary cutter. 

Cut each of your fabric strips into 22cm long pieces.

You can also make a small version using strips that are 3 x 18cm, or make chunky chains with pieces that are 5 x 18 cm. You can play around and decide what you like!

For any lightweight fabrics, add interfacing to the wrong sides of those strips.

Step 2: Add Velcro

Take your stick-on velcro and cut it into small pieces.

Stick one piece onto one end of the fabric strip, then flip the strip over and attach the matching piece to the opposite end of the strip.

Step 3: Make Your Fabric Paper Chain

Close the first loop, then thread the next fabric strip through the loop and close it. Continue to chain link the pieces together until you have a long fabric chain.

Step 4: Hang Your Fabric Paper Chain

I like to hang my paper chain by threading a piece of string through the last loop and then hanging it on a little command hook. At the end of Christmas you can easily remove the command hook with no damage.

Looking for More Low-Waste Craft Ideas?

I love a low-waste Christmas project, and my Alphabet Banner sewing pattern is no exception!

You might also like my scrap-busting post on how to make beeswax wraps – they make a lovely little gift!

Or you could try making fabric scrap Christmas ornaments. It’s so satisfying it’s a little bit addictive!

Whatever you’re planning to make, I hope adding this little fabric paper chain to your decor brings just as much joy to your kids as it has to mine. Merry Christmas!